


Establishing Communication

by GuineaGoon



Series: Communication [1]
Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Brotherhood: Final Fantasy XV, Canon-Typical Violence, Fluff and Humor, Friends to Lovers, M/M, background regclar
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-04
Updated: 2021-01-16
Packaged: 2021-03-14 07:01:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 12,263
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28541475
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GuineaGoon/pseuds/GuineaGoon
Summary: Gladiolus works to help navigate a kidnapping situation at the arcade Noctis and Prompto were spending the afternoon, while reflecting on his relationship with Prompto.Plus, he knows Prompto can save Noctis.
Relationships: Gladiolus Amicitia/Prompto Argentum
Series: Communication [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2208447
Comments: 24
Kudos: 64





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> New year, new fandom! Final Fantasy XV and 2020 got me back to writing fanfiction! I'm so excited!
> 
> Also, don't fret, this fic is complete and edited! I plan on posting the other two chapters on the following Saturdays or Sundays depending on how the weekend goes. (Also gives me time to work on other stories while I'm posting this.)

Gladiolus stopped in the middle of his training routine that afternoon to stretch and to take in some of the calm atmosphere of the training hall. He was one of the few people currently using it to enjoy one of the few times he got some free time from his Shield duties. He made sure to take the most of the chance to work off any stress he had before getting wrapped up in the business of the Citadel. The calm broke when Cor walked into the room with a clipped pace and honed in on him immediately.

“Amicitia, there’s a situation. Follow me,” the Marshall ordered before pivoting on his heel and leaving the room.

The younger Crownsguard knew he couldn’t disobey, so he began to follow the man quickly. “What’s the situation?” He knew the other man wouldn’t interrupt his known afternoon off without a very good reason. They all had such precious time to themselves when devoted to the Crown and Citadel like they were.

“Fallen Star. We’re meeting the others now to get an idea of who is at play here.”

The code word for Noctis being kidnapped. Gladiolus almost stopped walking in surprise. Why had he allowed his prince to go off alone to the arcade that afternoon. He felt like an idiot for not insisting more about going with him. Now he could get hurt with no Shield at his side. Even just a few extra Crownsguard wouldn’t replace the role he played.

In no time Cor and Gladiolus arrived at the situation room where they joined Clarus, Regis, Titus, Ignis, and several other Crownsguard and Kingsglaive at a large table with the King sitting at the head. They were all looking at a screen full of information that had already been gathered.

“What do we know so far?” Regis asked from where he was seated at the head of the table.

Ignis pulled up a tablet and flicked a few bits of information to show on the screen. “It appears that several dark vehicles pulled up to the arcade His Highness was visiting that afternoon carrying various assailants. These individuals, currently unknown origins, quickly worked to take out the guards who were stationed outside of the arcade before going inside. Right now, they have taken the arcade hostage.”

“How many people are inside the arcade currently?”

“We’re working with estimates until we get more people on the ground. Still, we know the prince went with a friend to the arcade, and there were at least two Crownsguard inside the arcade. Status of those four are unknown. They drew the window coverings as soon as the building was taken to prevent us from getting a good view of the situation inside.” Ignis explained, pulling up the CC camera. True to his word, the cameras showed darkened windows with only a few vague shadows moving inside the room.

Gladiolus balled his hands into fists at the clinical way Ignis was describing the situation regarding two of their friends. He knew they had to be calm and collected about these things, but he had just argued this morning about being at that same arcade with them. Then, he realized the friend inside the arcade with Noctis was Prompto.

\---

Gladiolus began taking long runs through Insomnia during his first year of high school. He did this in the early morning as a good way to get a break from the Citadel, his home, and the pressures they all contained. He enjoyed being able to see people who had accepted their duties in life for the most part, and they served a way for him to get a bit of contrast from the frustration training had become.

During these runs, he would take a bit of time to greet the different people he would see along the way. Some of them would stand out more than others, which was how he noticed the young, overweight boy struggling with his own run day after day. Somehow, this boy kept standing out in his mind among the sea of people he saw everyday.

The future Shield did not need another person to train, not with an obstinate Prince being a thorn in his side. Still, something about this young blond kept him wanting to offering more than a simple greeting. He put it up to that glint of determination he saw in those blue eyes every time they exchanged their quick ‘hello’s every morning.

Finally, one day, Gladiolus allowed the impulsive action to win. He turned around to join the slow jogging stride with the kid. “How long have you been running?” He asked.

The younger teen nearly stumbled at the question before looking at him. “I- ah, two weeks?” Even with the slow pace, his words were breathless.

The brunet knew he could work with this. “Want some pointers? What else you doing?” 

His question only got a few blinks in response before the job stumbled a few steps. “Oh, no, I don’t- I'd be a bother to you.”

“I wouldn’t offer if I didn’t mean it.” 

Those blue eyes blinked a few more times at him before narrowing some. “You’re sure? I don’t- I want to know how to- I’m trying to be better. I’m trying. I need to be better.”

Gladiolus thought those words had a meaning he might not quite catch, but maybe he just read too many romance novels. “Okay, let’s work on your form then. And what stretches are you doing?”

“Stretches?”

\---

Clarus looked over his own tablet for a moment. “Have we looked over this place before? Is this a regular establishment for His Highness?”

Cor nodded. “Yes, the Prince has come to this location many times during high school and continues to come after graduation. We made sure to vet the owners and do checks on the staff working there regularly. This does not seem like an inside job for the assailants.”

The people working at the arcade were good people, Gladiolus knew that. He and Ignis knew that. They had been the people who regularly vetted them due to following Noctis and Prompto to that arcade for years. They both knew this could not be an inside job; the staff adored the younger duo and their antics far too much when they ran around the arcade like children.

“We know there are at least three attendants working at this time of day. Hopefully, we can establish communication soon to get an estimate on how many other civilians were inside when the building was taken.” Ignis added.

“What is our ETA on getting the Crownsguard there?” Regis asked though he did not pick up the offered tablet in front of him.

Cor did pick up one of the tablets, and Gladiolus saw him pulling up a GPS app to check location trackers for a good estimate. “Crownsguard should be on the scene within five minutes. The Guard is expected to take over controlling the scene on the ground from law enforcement in the area.”

“Glaive should arrive within the same time frame as well. Estimates have them arriving a little before the Guard.” Titus added from his seat. “The current plan is for the Warper focused Glaive to set up vantage points to assist in any pincer movements on the building.”

\---

“You’re sure your parents don’t mind us doing this in the house?” Gladiolus asked while moving the furniture to create a bigger space for them to use. He had yet to meet Prompto’s parents, and while he hadn’t been in the house very much, the place always felt too empty for hosting three people inside.

Prompto looked up from where he had finished shoving the table against the wall. His eyes were wide for just a second before he gave a quick shrug. “Oh, sure, yeah. It’ll be fine. Just have to make sure to put everything back.”

The Shield had learned during the few months they had been working together that the blond was a bit too good at deflecting questions about his parents. They never seemed to be home when he came to the house. The two managed to work longer hours than his Dad, which felt like a feat to be worse workaholics than the current Shield.

Not that he would ever mention that. He had yet to really explain who his Dad was, and what his future job would entail. These afternoons represented the same freedom their morning runs had. A chance to just be Gladiolus so he could be a better Shield when he was with Noctis.

“That sounds nice,” he mused while stacking some chairs together to get a bit more space. “I hate trying to invite friends over. Dad is so protective of me and my sister.”

“Your Dad sounds nice though. He obviously cares a lot.”

“Yeah, he does care, but ever since Mom. . .” Gladiolus trailed off, missing such a strong force in his life. He looked up when he felt a hand on his arm to find blue eyes looking at him. Prompto gave him a little smile. “Yeah, ever since Mom, I suppose I don’t blame him for wanting us to be extra careful.”

“We’ll just be extra careful, right? Give him no reason to worry, then one day, he’ll be good about you having friends over.” The blond argued with a firm nod. “I bet you have a bunch of friends you can invite over. Now, you said today was arm day, right? Why do I have a feeling I’m going to hate this?”

The Shield laughed and patted his shoulder. “Because you’re learning. And, after this, we’re going to try and make that recipe we’ve been messaging about. Since you mentioned your parents have been working late recently.”

“Sure we should be attempting cooking? That seems. . . dangerous.” Prompto asked with an eyebrow raised.

“We’ve got this. I’m sure about it.” Gladiolus assured him with another pat on the back. The blond pulled out his phone and tapped a few times on his screen. “What are you doing?”

“I’m just making sure we’ve got the number of the fire department handy for this.” Prompto laughed.

“Oh, now you’re really going to hate arm day.” Gladiolus growled while lunging forward to try and scoop his friend up from the ground.

\---

“I want to know as soon as we get more eyes on the scene. Do we know what the assailants are wanting right now?” Regis asked as he looked them all over.

“That seems unclear. No one has made any demands, and it does seem like everyone who attacked the building has gone inside. Any who were injured in the first round of attacks were pulled inside as well.” Ignis replied calmly. Gladiolus felt a bit envious about his friend’s calm façade, as he knew if he were asked to speak, he couldn’t manage as well.

Just to spite him, Cor looked over at him. “Gladiolus, you’ve been overseeing His Highness’s training. How do you think His Highness is fairing inside the building?”

The future Shield took a few slow breaths he had taught Prompto to use while clenching his fists a little bit more. He took that time to formulate the answer and channel some of Ignis’s calm façade. “I believe His Highness is well skilled to take on several opponents. If he were the target, however, they could have easily overwhelmed even him. We have only recently started working on countering large groups of opponents.”

“Do you believe his friend would serve as a distraction while he was defending himself?” Clarus asked this time, not realizing the surge of annoyance which coursed through his son at that.

Gladiolus feared his nails might end up cutting into his palms if he wasn’t careful. The question was valid; he knew that. No one except him and Cor knew Prompto had started any sort of offensive training, let alone knew the skill he had fighting. This wasn’t his place to sing his praises, he just had to assure them his friend would not be a weak link here.

\---

Gladiolus missed the first train out to the area of Insomnia where Prompto lived. He hated that he was now over thirty minutes late, with a dead phone in his pocket so he couldn’t warn his friend he would be late. Especially after these afternoons were always the highlight of his week, and this delay would just eat into the time he got to spend there.

He finally made it to the familiar door and knocked on it quickly. The lack of rapid response didn’t surprise him, but with a repeat knock, he was surprised when there was a continued silence. The pause stretched out for a long moment, and he worried even more. Finally, he knocked for a third time, calling Prompto’s name.

Did Prompto think he had ditched him?

The awkward pause ended when the door opened to reveal his friend. Gladiolus managed to bite back a gasp when he saw his friend though. 

Prompto’s eyes were rimmed in red along with his nose. His eyelashes glittered a bit as he took a long blink when he took in Gladiolus standing there. “Gladio? I thought. . . I thought you weren’t coming today.” He said softly, his eyes flicking down to the ground.

“Prom, you okay?” Gladiolus asked, taking a step forward with a hand stretched out to take hold of his wrist. He could feel the quick flutter of his rapid pulse.

The touch startled Prompto enough to make him jerk back. “What? No, I’m fine. I’m just- I’m surprised to see you. Let’s get the living set up, since you’re here to workout.”

He turned around to head back into the house with his head still hung low, only stopping to give a tug on the hand holding his wrist.

Gladiolus frowned at that and tugged him back closer toward him, wrapping his other arm around his shoulder in a loose hug. “I’m here to see you. The workout is just something we do together. Prom, what’s bothering you?”

The blond sagged into his hold, resting his forehead on his chest. “I don’t know why we’re friends. I thought- I thought you realized that and decided to stop coming. Found better people to workout with.” His words were a quick, soft babble of poison to him.

To Gladiolus, he wished he could shield him from that kind of poison forever. He had known from the first day they had met, something lurked in the corners of Prompto’s mind, but he had waited over a year to start seeing what those were. Now, he wished he could find a way to extract all of them so he could prevent from plaguing him in the future.

“Prom, I don’t- I can’t describe every reason why I’m friends with you. You’re funny, and sweet, and king. You’re a great friend.” He tightened his hold on the blond to be a bit firmer to act more as the Shield he was if just for a moment.

During the hug, he could feel more of the physical changes the year of hard work he served for Prompto. The long runs, the workouts, the new recipes had all started to shed the weight and reveal the muscle underneath them all. And now that body was pressed completely against him. With Prompto pressed against him, Gladiolus realized one more thing, about himself.

He really wanted to kiss his best friend.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here we go! Another week, another chapter! I hope you enjoy it!
> 
> I've been greatly enjoying the response everyone has been having for this. Thank you so much!

“Sir, I believe Prompto would be more than capable to assist His Highness during any fighting happening inside the building.” Gladiolus replied with more of his false calm. “If nothing else, he should be able to hold his own and not prove a distraction.” He prided himself on how collected he managed to keep his response. That, and he managed to not try to brag about Prompto there. No one would believe him anyway.

He looked over the room and saw Ignis staring at him curiously for a beat before looking back down at his tablet. “Your Majesty, Your Grace, local law enforcement has secured the area and made sure to lock down the block to prevent any reinforcements from coming into the area. All other civilians have been escorted away from the premises as well.”

“Do we have any casualties from the Crownsguard who were stationed outside?” Regis asked. Gladiolus saw his hand reach out to the table to start tapping slowly. He also saw his father take notice. The King must be worried if he was showing any outside signs of stress.

Ignis did a few taps on his tablet to retrieve the information. “No deaths have been confirmed, Your Majesty. All the Crownsguard stationed outside the building have taken some form of injury, they have been triaged by local emergency medical staff, and they were taken to Insomnia Central for further treatment. I have sent messages out just now to the hospital to get further clarification on their status.” His fingers were flying across the tablet to get those messages sent immediately.

“Thank you, Mister Scientia. I would like to know their condition as soon as possible.” Regis said, his voice a bit softer than it had been earlier in the conversation. The future Shield wondered how much each injury worried the King in moments like this.

\---

“You’re extra cheerful today, Prom.” Gladiolus laughed while they wound down their afternoon at one of the outlooks for the city. He had been planning this run for a week just for this specific stop during the run.

Prompto was bouncing while he took pictures of the city, not doing any of the stretches he should be. “Dude! Today was awesome! I mean, yes, school started up again, and that sucked, but! I made a new friend, and that was great!” His answer came out in a great rush of words.

“School go okay? Don’t forget to stretch.”

“Oh, pfft, yeah, piece of cake. I mean, it’s just high school.”

Gladiolus gave a snort of laughter at his friend’s statement. “Just high school. Whatever you say blondie. So, tell me about this new friend of yours. Transfer at school?”

Prompto paused in his photo taking to rub at the back of his head. The Shield stopped his stretches to look over at the blond more closely, since this should be an interesting story.

“Well, no, actually. I just- I decided today was going to be the day I say hi to him. He just- He always looked so lonely- I thought, well- maybe he just needed someone to say hi.”

“And you didn’t think that until now because?”

Prompto picked at his wristband for a beat. The other teen wondered if he was going to get another confession from this moment. He hoped so; he wanted to keep leeching that poison so he could keep this great soul safe from such terrible thoughts. An impatient part of his mind wondered how long this process would take to complete clear out all of these negative parts of his mind fully.

“I didn’t think I’d be good enough for him. I felt today was a day I was good enough for him.” Prompt finally explained in his soft tone.

Gladiolus gave a huff at that, stood up, and wrapped an arm around him to pull his friend into a tight hug. “You’re good enough to be everyone’s friend. How many times do I have to tell you that? If he doesn’t see that; he’s an idiot.”

His words evoked a huff of shaky laughter from Prompto, who weakly pushed to get out of the hug. “Alright, okay, fine. You win. I just- I hope you’re right. So far I’m really annoying his company. I know it’s just the first day, but he plays King’s Knight as well, and he has this really weird sense of humor, and I just- I’m glad I finally got the courage.”

I’m proud of you blondie. He hurts you, lemme know, I’ve got your back.” Gladiolus assure him, showing off his arms with a little smile. “Now come on, we have some stretching to finish up before we get back to our running route for the day.”

“Gladio, why are you such a slave driver?” Prompto whined. Somehow, his whining just made the Shield laugh as they got to work together.

\---

The moment of quiet was interrupted when Titus tapped on his ear and tilted his head oddly. Gladiolus had to take a moment to remember the Kingsglaive all wore earpieces to communicate with each other during their battles.

As if to confirm this, Titus righted his posture and spoke, “I have confirmed the Glaive are on the scene of the building. They are preparing the site for the Guard to assist local law enforcement while they take command of the situation.”

“The Guard should be at the scene soon. They were just a little bit behind the Glaive.” Cor added easily.

“Please have the Kingsglaive set up different vantage points as they can to keep an overview of the area. I do not want to be surprised during this situation. Also, I want to get some communication set up with the inside of that building as soon as we can.” Regis added, placing his hand back into his lap.

The Head of the Kingsglaive nodded at that. “I will see that it is done. I will return when those orders have been carried out.” He stood up and stepped out of the room to start making the necessary calls. His departure left another quiet in the room, this time tenser than the earlier ones.

\---

This afternoon was one of the first times his Shield duties had caused Gladiolus to cancel plans with Prompto. He feared as freshman year continued on, this would begin to happen more and more. Especially as this mysterious new friend was becoming more of a feature in conversations. He bit back a sigh and looked down at his phone discreetly to see if his friend had sent a message back about his afternoon plans.

When he had first canceled, he worried the blond would start to panic on him, but he had just gotten a reply understanding and making other plans in that case. Otherwise, he might have fought harder to get Noctis to reschedule this meet up.

“Hey, you know,” Gladiolus mused as he finally slid his phone back into his pocket, “you talk so much about this person, but I don’t know if I’ve ever heard you mention their name? Sure this isn’t just… some made up excuse to go to the arcade?”

The car stopped in front of the very carefully vetted arcade for just this meet up. He climbed out of the car first to look over the building to ensure the area looked good. Hearing his charge give a small squawk in protest just made him smile.

“I could’ve sworn I had!” Noctis protested while climbing out of the car to follow.

Gladiolus soon fell into his dictated position, still smiling a little. “Nope, never came up. Not in the thousand times you’ve talked about them.” He teased.

“Noct! I’m over here!” That voice was surprisingly family, making the Shield whip his head around to look at his cheerful blond friend waving over to the group.

He could tell the moment Prompto saw him standing behind Noctis. The other’s arm dropped, and his head immediately tilted to the side while he blinked. “Gladio?” he asked softly.

Noctis stopped and looked between the two of them. “Do you two. . . know each other?”

“Is this what you tend to do during your afternoons off? You always told me you were training on those days.” Ignis mused when he approached their group. He stood with his hand lightly holding his chin as he assessed the situation and lips tilted up a little to one side. Gladiolus did not need him to be too amused by this whole situation.

Prompto looked between the three of them quickly and started to play with his wristband. “Gladio’s my workout buddy? I thought- I’m confused now. You know Noct?” His shoulders were starting to sink forward in a clear sign the Shield knew he was started to retreat and spiral.

“Come on, you got it. I’m your friend, workout buddy, whatever. Remember, just because we rescheduled today, doesn’t mean you’re getting out of leg day. Goofing off with this guy doesn’t get you out of it.” Gladiolus said quickly while he wrapped an arm around the blond’s shoulders.

Noctis gave a huff and rolled his eyes at them. He reached forward to tug on Prompto’s hand hard enough to pull him out of the loose hold. “Come on, we should be doing that now. Gladio, stop hogging my friend. Prom promised me Justice Monsters 5 is in this arcade, and I want to see if it’s as good as the internet says.”

Gladiolus watched his friend for a while, needing to check that he was relaxing more. He breathed when he confirmed that Noctis seemed to stumble on the way to get Prompto out of his own head some. So, the Shield just shook his head with a little laugh. “Dude, you should never trust anything on the internet to be true. All a bunch of lies.”

Finally they all made their way into the arcade, Ignis following them all quietly this time. Gladiolus wondered what was going through his oldest friend’s mind, and when he would pounce on him with questions. At least their friendship wouldn’t cause problems in the future with his other friends. He just had to worry about Noctis stealing Prompto all the time.

After taking a short walk around the arcade for any possible threats, Gladiolus settled at the table Ignis had staked out for them. The advisor had a knack for finding tables with great vantage points. He had also managed to get an Ebony and some water for each of them.

Interrogation time.

“You’ve already met His Highness’s friend before? How did you accomplish that?” Ignis asked, always one to cut to the chase between the two of them.

Gladiolus looked over his friend with a slightly wary gaze. He wanted to be careful to keep some privacy if he could. “I’ve known him for a few years now. We met each other during some workouts, and we’ve been helping each other. Workout buddies.”

“And you never thought to mention this before?” His friend asked as he leaned in close over the can of Ebony.

The Shield’s eyes narrowed at the accusation. “Do I need to have all of my friends vetted too? Pretty sure I can take him. Plus, it’s not like I plan on taking him to the Citadel any time soon.” He let loose a long sigh to try and relax. “Don’t you think it’s- it’s nice to not have all of your life associated with that place?”

Ignis leaned back a little bit, adjusting his glasses absently. “Now you’re sounding like His Highness. Have you two been talking more?” He looked more relaxed since the moment he had sat down at the table.

Gladiolus sighed again at the question. “No, this isn’t something we’ve discussed before. I met Prom because I wasn’t talking to Noct. Kinda the point. I needed some space from all of that.” He stabbed his water straw a bit too hard into the glass and made a mess on the table. He sighed and started to mop up all the water to avoid talking more.

“That was what, three years ago? You’ve known Prompto for three years now?”

That made the older teen blink some then shrug. “I suppose I have, hadn’t really thought about it. I get so little time to myself, and well, I guess I like to spend it with him. We do spend it mostly working out in some way. It’s nice to have someone who actually cares about that.”

“Three years, and we never knew. I’m impressed.” Ignis mused. “Think you’ll end up keeping your afternoons with him? I sense His Highness will want more and more of Prompto’s time, much for the same reason you did.”

Gladiolus took a deep breath, recalling the meditation practice he had done with Prompto just a few weeks ago, to help collect his thoughts and emotions. That breath helped him focus enough to say, “I imagine we can find a way to make it work. Maybe with Prom’s help, I can get Noct to focus more on his training.”

“Wouldn’t that be the day?”

A loud shout made them both look over at the younger pair celebrating happily over one of the machines and high fiving. The older pair looked at each other and smiled fondly at their excitement.

\---

Gladiolus was waiting for the next set of instructions to go through the room. Most people were watching their tablets or each other during this current lull in activity. He did not expect for his phone to go off in his pocket.

Carefully he pulled it out under the table to look at who could have messaged him at this time.

THE BESTEST BOI: Gn armkgsr lles

He didn’t question how Prompto managed to get his phone. This was Prompto. His first task was to get out of the room to get the gun into the Armiger. “Your Majesty, may I have permission to help with the Guard evacuate His Highness from the building?”

Regis looked up at the question curiously. “Yes, I believe that would be acceptable. Get geared up, and transport will be ready for you shortly.”

“Thank you, Your Majesty.” Gladiolus stood and gave the King a shallow bow. He was glad his request had been granted with little question.

He hurried out of the room to start heading to the training rooms again. These he knew he could find a few guns Prompto should be able to use, and Gladiolus would be able to change into his gear without too many stops. Quickly he made his way to that area before he heard the footsteps behind him.

Pivoting, he saw Cor standing behind him. “What are you planning?” The Marshall had his arms crossed over his chest with his usual flat expression.

Gladiolus looked at him cautiously. “I’m planning on joining the Guard at the arcade. I don’t know what you’re worried about.”

“What was the message you received?”

The question made him freeze. “My message?”

“Yes, what did it say?” Cor held out his hand for the cell phone.

For a moment Gladiolus considered that. Then, he handed over his phone for the Marshall, who quickly read it over. He watched as an eyebrow slowly raised in response to the few letters displayed there.

“Follow me.”

\---

This afternoon, instead of a usual workout, Gladiolus had suggested they take a walk through the city. He wanted to enjoy a chance to chat and watch Prompto take photos for a few hours. He was on a mission to prove they were friends after their conversation months ago.

Somehow Prompto managed to walk around the city backwards to chat with his camera dangling at his side. “I’ve been thinking about our workouts. I want to add something to them.”

“What’re you thinking? Reading more blogs?” Gladiolus asked curiously. He reached out to once again save the other from running into a pole.

“Nah, I want to know how to fight like you and Iggy.”

“Prom, you don’t need to learn to fight.” He replied quickly, grabbing Prompto’s hand to stop them in the middle of the street for a moment. He gave no mind to the disgruntled noise of the people moving around them. “I thought you didn’t want to get too wrapped up with all the Prince stuff with Noct?”

“I mean, not really, but he’s one of my friends, and you’re my best friend. So I just- I want to be able to keep up with all of you.” Prompto muttered and shrugged some. His shoulders were started to curl in a way that made Gladiolus’s protective instinct twitch.

“I’ll teach you to fight, but only if you promise me you aren’t doing this because you’re worried about getting left behind. You know Noct and I won’t do that to you. Sure, some self defense probably wouldn’t hurt you. And sparring would help combine different muscle groups for our workouts.” He twisted Prompto around so he could sling an arm around his shoulders to pull him in close.

If Gladiolus also enjoyed keeping Prompto close to him, that secret was his to cherish right then.

Prompto leaned into the hold while they started walking down the street together. “Then, let’s change up some of our workouts to teach Prompto to not get his ass kicked! Sounds like a deal. Who knows, maybe one day I can kick your ass.”

“Wishful thinking, but I like that you’ve set a goal for yourself.” Gladiolus laughed. “You know I’m not going to go easy on you.”

“Of course not. When have you ever done that for me? I would think you’re a body snatcher. Come on, we still have some time today, and my parents won’t be home till later.” Prompto always said that, but Gladiolus was beginning to think there was a lie somewhere in there. A tug on his hand made those thoughts fly away as Prompto laughed at him. “Come on, let’s get started right now!”

Gladiolus laughed at that and easily followed Prompto, only shifted his hand so their fingers were intertwined instead.

\---

“Where are we going, sir?” Gladiolus asked while he followed the Marshall quickly through the Citadel. They were heading toward the locker rooms near the shooting range. This was not the area he had originally planned to grab a gun to place into the Armiger.

“I know where Prompto keeps his pistol stored. He should have a weapon he’s familiar with at least. And one that is well serviced.” Cor explained. “Then we will head out to the scene together.”

The Shield was glad he had support in getting some help to his friends. “Why did you not tell anyone Prompto texted me?” The question had been bothering him since they had started walking through the training rooms together. He knew what he should have done, and that he should not be a rogue agent.

“Why didn’t you?”

He hated getting a question in return for his own question. Still, there was a point there. “They wouldn’t let me do this. They would try to use the connection to get more communication inside, and they wouldn’t trust Prompto.”

“Exactly.”

\---

“Are you sure this is a good idea?” Prompto asked.

Something in his voice made Gladiolus look over at his friend. He was surprised to find that he had fallen behind a little bit while walking through the Citadel. And now his hands were clasped together tight enough to turn his knuckles white, and his shoulders hunched forward in a familiar position. He took a deep breath to give himself a moment to consider his words. “Prom, no one is going to mind you being here. You’ve here with Noct before, right?”

“I mean,yeah? But to play video games. Why are you taking me to the training rooms? That’s for the Crownsguard and the Kingsglaive! I’ll be getting in their way.” The words came out in a rush to signal Prompto had really worked himself up into a state.

With a little touch on his arm, Gladiolus made them stop in the middle of the hallway. He reached down to untangle the other’s hands, take them in his own, and give them a little squeeze. “Prom, yes, we’re going to the training room, but I think there’s something you’ll be good at there. And, someone I want you to meet.” He kept his words slow and calm to prevent a further spiral, along with the calm breaths they used frequently.

He hated seeing Prompto worked up like this and unable to see how good he could be at things. He had tried to convince him how impressive his learning curve was during their sparring. Since he couldn’t do it, he was going to bring in someone else to help him. Plus, he could recognize he would hit a wall of how best to train someone with Prompto’s skills.

Prompto squeezed back and looked over the other carefully. Then, he matched the calm breath for a beat. “I guess- if you’re sure about this, okay, okay. Let’s do this thing. But, you didn’t warn me we’re meeting someone.”

“I didn’t want to freak you out more than you’re doing now. Come on, I had to make sure I got him when he had a bit of time. We can’t be late, or he’ll kill me the next time I train with him.” Gladiolus hated dropping their hands, but they did have to get moving.

Soon enough he opened the doors to the training rooms and led them to the small set of rooms the Marshall preferred to use for personal use. Like he had arranged, standing there with his usual flat expression was Cor.

Unfortunately, the moment Prompto saw Cor, he emitted a small squeak and went to hide behind his larger friend. “Gladio, you didn’t tell me we’re meeting Cor the Immortal!” He whisper-shrieked.

“Marshall Leonis, thank you for meeting us. I brought my friend I was telling you about, Prompto Argentum.” Gladiolus told Cor easily, ignoring Prompto while he gently pulled him out from behind him.

To his surprise, the moment Cor really looked over the blond, Gladiolus could have sworn he saw a flicker of an expression on the usually deadpan face. The face changed so quickly, he had no idea what the expression was or what it meant, but he wondered what the other knew. 

“Ah, yes, the one you wanted to have permission to use the shooting range.” Cor said with little nod. “And, you mentioned another request without further information.”

“The shooting range?” Prompto asked suddenly while he looked over Gladiolus’s arm.

“He has incredible hand-eye coordination, and he has a knack for studying angles and trajectory. I think he would be a fast learner with firearms. He just needs someone to give him access to using them. And to teach him the finer points.” Gladiolus explained easily. He used Prompto’s movement to better get him to stand beside him. “Also, I wanted to see if someone could improve some of his fighting styles. He’s built more for speed, and I can’t teach him how to properly use that.”

“I’d have to see him in action first, to know who to best pair him with.” Cor replied easily. “And, I promise nothing about teaching him firearms.”

Gladiolus looked at Prompto with a little smile. “Want to give it a shot? I’m not lying about what I told the Marshall. I think you would do a lot better with some more instructors.”

Prompto looked up at him with those blue-purple eyes, eyes which looked quickly over at Cor. His shoulders stayed loose and relaxed as he considered the question seriously. “I. . . I think- I suppose it doesn’t hurt to try. But you aren’t getting out of our workouts. Promise me.”

“Of course we’re keeping our workouts.” Gladiolus agreed easily, almost laughing. Really their afternoons for workouts or just walks around the city for the highlight of his week. Even if they just walked around the city. 

“Do you want to see the two of us spar together?” He asked, redirecting his attention over to Cor.

The question only got a small moment of consideration from Cor before the man shook his head. “Not at this moment. Does he know any weapons currently, or just hand to hand combat?” The Marshall asked while starting toward the door, bypassing them with little consideration.

“Mostly hand to hand. I’ve done some of the smaller swords to start with, but nothing seriously.” Gladiolus explained while he pivoted to follow easily.

Prompto hesitated in the room as the two started to move so quickly, before he scrambled to keep up with them. He grabbed onto Gladiolus’s arm as Cor called for a young Crownsguard member over and asked him to spar, squeezing a bit hard when the request was agreed to easily.

Gladiolus gently removed Prompto’s hand and pushed him toward the sparring ring. Then he went over to stand next to Cor to watch over the match. He hoped he had made the correct choice and didn’t bring his friend a new set of heartbreak and embarrassment if he failed in this. He had so much faith in what he saw from Prompto, and he knew there was a deep well of potential to tap.

The Crownsguard member dropped into an offensive position along with Prompto, and soon they started to circle each other cautiously. Fortunately during their brief exchange, Cor had explained this would be a no weapons spar, as no weapon appeared from the Armiger.

Prompto made the first strike, appearing to test the Crownguard’s reflexes and show he was a threat. True to the discussion before, he was quick in his movements and his assessments. He tested and tried different possible openings on his opponent.

Though many of his attempts to break the Crownguard’s defense were unsuccessful, Prompto did manage to harry and keep the other from making too many offensive strikes. Eventually, the newness of his fighting style overwhelmed him when the Crownsguard found a way to interrupt the quick and brutal strikes to break through with his own flurry of blows. At that point, Prompto was quickly disabled and fell flat on his back with the attacker standing over him with a deadly strike at his neck.

“Stand down.” Cor barked, and both individuals parted without a problem. The Crownsguard even held out his hand to Prompto to help him stand up with a small smile. “You’re dismissed Guard. Thank you for your time.” At the dismissal, the Crownsguard gave them both a small nod and left the room.

After that, the three of them stood in quiet for a moment. Only Prompto’s hard breaths filled the silence. “I see why you came to me Amicitia.” Cor’s words finally broke the silence.

Gladiolus smiled even as Prompto looked up at him with wide eyes. “I thought I knew what I was doing. Can you help him with his speed? And, does this mean he can have some firearms training?””

“Gladio! What’re you doing!” Prompto protested.

“Getting you the training you deserve Prom. You’re going to be great in this. I know it. And, you asked to learn to fight, right? Who am I to keep you from fighting in the best way possible?” Gladiolus turned to look at his friend, grabbing his arms to steady and comfort him.

Cor cleared his throat softly. “I believe we should head to the shooting range. Not many people use it, since that isn’t out focus with either division currently. Perhaps this will be the turn around we need in our forces to help handle the MTs. Come.” He turned on his heel smoothly to leave the room.

“Amicitia, you are relieved. I will speak with you later. Thank you for bringing Mister Argentum to me. We’ll be alright on our own.” Cor called out over his shoulder before he opened the door to the shooting range.

Gladiolus looked over Prompto to try and assure him. “You good? He’ll show you how to use the guns and everything. Nothing’ll happen to you there.”

Prompto wrung his hands for a moment then nodded. “I’ll be good. I’ll text you when I’m done, okay? Go enjoy the rest of your afternoon. Don’t get trapped here just cause of me.”

With one last little shove from Prompto, Gladiolus went off to find something to take his mind off of Prompto and Cor spending time alone together. He hoped something good would come out of his. Especially with the flicker of emotion the Marshall showed earlier. He wondered what could have been there.

Eventually, a few hours later, his phone started to buzz with a rapid series of text messages. He picked up his phone and immediately smiled as he worked to respond to his best friend.

The Best Boi: asldknj pls explain to me why I just signed up for more workouts?  
The Best Boi: and with fucking Cor the Immortal  
Gladiolus: language  
The Best Boi: FUCK YOU  
The Best Boi: You just signed me up for sparring lessons IN SECRET with the Immortal  
Gladiolus: Secret? What?  
The Best Boi: Dude, I was just given the address to a different gym than the Citadel, and told if he can’t make it, these people will train me  
The Best Boi: I am SUSPECT  
Gladiolus: Maybe you just watch too many spy movies?  
Gladiolus: Maybe he just wants to train you because you’re good at it?  
Gladiolus: You haven’t told me how the shooting range went  
The Best Boi: OMG GLADIO  
The Best Boi: HE IS BRUTAL  
The Best Boi: WHY DID YOU SET ME UP WITH HIM???  
The Best Boi: . . . but I really like guns? So I guess it’s okay?  
The Best Boi: He’s setting me up with someone to help?  
Gladiolus: I’m glad it worked out!  
Gladiolus: I knew you’d be good with those!  
Gladiolus: See, I was right  
Gladiolus: I’m always right


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And here we have the thrilling conclusion of our story! I've been really appreciating everyone's reactions to this story. Thank you so much!

Gladiolus watched Cor unlock the locker labeled “Argentum” with his skeleton key and pulled out the pistol stored inside there. “We’re really not going to tell anyone we’re doing this?” He finally broke and asked the quiet older man.

“I imagine no one would truly believe us if we told them the plan.” Cor took the pistol, focused, and then the gun vanished in a smattering of blue crystals. “We should just hope we’re right, shouldn’t we?”

“Let me change, and we can leave.”

“Do be quick. We don’t know how long it will take for them to establish communications.” The Marshal managed to tease. Gladiolus didn’t realize that Cor even knew how to tease people in his entire life.

\---

“How come we never spar anymore?” Prompto asked from the stretch he was holding after their latest jog.

Gladiolus looked over at him curiously, getting a little distracted by the lean figure flaunted in front of him. The hard work the other had put in during the last few years had paid dividends. With a little shake of his head, he made his brain focus back to the question. “I didn’t think you’d want to add more fighting to your life.”

“No dude, we should definitely do it. I want to see how I’d do against you. Maybe I’ll actually stand a chance against you.”

“Maybe, alright, sure. Want to go to your secret dogo, or to the Citadel?” He offered his hand to Prompto to help him stand up with a little smile. If he also enjoyed the sensation of holding his hand, well, who was he to argue.

“Secret dojo! Secret dojo!” Prompto laughed and tugged on their joined hands as he hopped up out of his stretch. “I can’t believe you haven’t been there yet. It’s actually pretty awesome. The instructors are. . . well, you know, intense like Cor.”

Gladiolus laughed and followed along easily. “So he’s Cor now? I thought you were too scared to ever call him Cor.”

The comment earned him a sheepish laugh from Prompto while he rubbed the back of his head. “Oh, well, I suppose after he’s thrown you around a few times across a room, you just have to accept calling him by his name. Or something like that at least.”

“What kind of training you getting?” Gladiolus asked with a raised eyebrow. He hadn’t really asked too much about the training to respect his friend’s privacy, but now he was almost concerned at what was happening during these sessions.

“What do you mean? I thought this was normal? It’s good to know how to get out of a fall and such. Also, it’s fun to tumble around and such.” Prompto shrugged easily and gave him a lazy smile.

They were walking closer to the refugee area of Insomnia, further from the Citadel than Gladiolus had expected Cor to recommend someone to get training. Still, they entered a nice looking gym full of padding and small groups of people practicing in different areas. He wasn’t surprised to find a few of them look up and greet Prompto with an amused shout and wave.

Prompto hurried over to one of the groups to have a quick, animated conversation before he came back to Gladiolus’s side. “Alright, I’ve scored a room for us to use. We came between some classes, so we are just in luck this afternoon.”

“Lucky us. And, good thing we only did a light jog today, so we still have plenty of energy to have fun.” Gladiolus mused while heading toward the back of the gym. “You’ve been learning mostly hand to hand combat, right?”

“Yeah, that and gun stuff. I’m not too good with large weapons, need more arm days apparently.” Prompto confessed while leading them into one of the empty classrooms complete with floor padding and mirrors lining one of the walls.

The pair headed to different ends of the room to loosen up a little bit before returning to the center of the room. Both assumed different loose fighting poses, and already Gladiolus could see how much more at ease Prompto was with his posture and looked more natural with the form.

Gladiolus decided to take the first move, snapping out with his foot to try and crush his knee from the side. Prompto spun around on the opposite foot and used the momentum to bring his hand up and try to push Gladiolus’s shoulder to knock him off balance. His hand made contact with the large muscle group but lacked the force to succeed.

With the hand still on his arm, Gladiolus reached up to get a firm hold of Prompto’s arm and throw him over his shoulder. Much to his surprise, the blond instead twisted around in the air to land on his feet like a cat. He somersaulted to face Gladiolus again with a little smile. Staying low, he rushed forward with a punch aimed at his kidneys, though that blow was easily blocked.

When Gladiolus had brought Prompto to Cor, the blond had been fast. The teachers here had made him faster and more efficient, and now he was using that speed to work on exhausting him as quickly as possible. To counter this quick offense, Gladiolus started to find any opening he could and just force his way through to keep him off balance and building up speed again.

For a while, the Shield’s tactic worked. He found sometimes just picking up Prompto in different holds to then throw him was the best way to distract him. Each time the blond went through the air, he found a way to roll or twist to keep from getting the air knocked out of him.

A savage light started to grow in Prompto’s eyes, which sent a little thrill down Gladiolus’s back. He pushed a little harder in a desire to see what would happen at the end of this fight.

What happened ended up being Prompto almost yelling while throwing himself straight ahead with all of his body weight, no matter how light he might be at this point. The sheer force and surprise of the attack finally toppled Gladiolus’s center of balance, and he was tired enough from the long fight to fall flat on his back. The shock of the fall knocked the breath from his chest to leave him breathless.

Prompto looked down at the Shield with a smile, hands planted on either side of his head. Purple-blue eyes stared directly into amber. “I think I’ve improved a little bit.” He panted. He was dripping in sweat which caused his hair to stick to his forehead and face to glisten. “What do I get as my prize?”

“I don’t know. What’d you want?” Gladiolus replied breathlessly. His breathing suffered from being knocked to the floor and from being distracted by the sight hovering over him. 

“I think I’ve an idea,” was the only warning he got before a pair of lips were pressed against his in a messy but wonderful kiss. Gladiolus wasted no time to bring up his hand to cup the back of Prompto’s head to relish the sensation of their lips finally meeting.

Eventually, he didn’t know who moved first, but they pulled apart to stare at each other for a long moment. Prompto’s eyes were wide while his tongue briefly licked his lips. Gladiolus let his hand gently comb through the Prompto’s sweaty hair.

“You good there?”

“Very good. You? Probably should’ve asked before jumping you.” Prompto replied with a faint laugh.

“Maybe, but I’ve got no regrets with how this went. I’d very much like to do that again. And now I get why Cor has been throwing you around so much.”

Prompto burst out into laughter at that, burying his face into Gladiolus’s shoulder.

\---

Once the gun was put away into the Armiger, Gladiolus quickly pulled out his phone to send out a quick text message to Prompto, hoping he would find a way to get it and use the information.

Gladiolus: Got your pistol put away. Cor and I are coming. Don’t wreck too much shit without me.

He tried to ignore the stab of panic at not being able to be there to help him inside the building. His best friend and his charge were still in the thick of danger without him to help.

“I’ll get the car ready. Meet me at the garage.” Cor said once the phone was put away

With a quick salute, the Shield went to grab the uniform he kept in the training rooms to change. Once dressed, he nearly sprinted through the Citadel to the garage. He had no care for the rules at this point. He felt the situation would allow him the break currently. He had a Prince and a boyfriend to rescue.

\---

Gladiolus checked his appearance in the mirror one last time, just for any last minute touch ups that might need to be done. Prompto was due to arrive at his house soon, and he wanted everything to go well.

“Gladdy! Why are you being such a peacock right now? Got a hot date tonight?” Iris asked from where she was perched on the door frame.

“Iris! What did we say about knocking!” He fussed as he spun around to face his little sister.

She laughed a little bit and covered her mouth to stifle the giggle. “That I should do it. But, you didn’t answer my question. Peacocking, why? Also, Dad should be home soon according to Jared, and he’s bringing Regis apparently for dinner.”

That stopped Gladiolus in his tracks. “Dad’s bringing Regis? Tonight?” He felt his heart hit the pit of his stomach. Prompto, according to what he had told him about his and Noctis’s friendship, hadn't reached the meet the King stage yet. Noctis was apparently being strange about that, and Prompto was only slightly worried about it.

“I mean, he comes over for dinner pretty frequently. Why would. . . you do have a date tonight!” She bounced on her toes excitedly. “Who is it? Come on, please tell me.”

“Not now Iris, please.” The now slightly panicked Shield was heading for his phone in his bedroom, which took that moment to let out a series of text messages. Iris followed right on his heels.

THE BESTEST BOI: Just left the station  
THE BESTEST BOI: All of these houses are so fancy  
THE BESTEST BOI: You grew up here?

His fingers hovered over the keyboard to wonder about if this was going to be a massive mistake. He could feel his sister leaning over his shoulder to look at his phone, and at this point, he did not even care.

“Is that Prompto? You two would be so sweet together.” She said softly.

“Glad you approve. Because I’m going to need your help keeping him from completely panicking tonight. He hasn’t met Dad or Regis yet.” Gladiolus confessed while looking over at her.

She made a face at that before giving a solid nod. “You got it. And you know they’re going to like him so much.” She did a long slow inhale as she pulled back with giant eyes. “Were you going to introduce Prompto as your boyfriend? Have you met his parents?” Her questions were a giant rush of excited words.

The question made him flush a little bit. “I was thinking about it. We’ve been dating for half a year now. I figured it was time to tell Dad about it.”

A pillow was thrown at his face. “Six months! And I’m just now hearing about this. Gladdy, you’re the worst brother ever!”

Gladiolus wasn’t able to respond when he heard the doorbell go off with Jared quickly heading over to answer the door. He decided going down to greet his boyfriend was better than starting a pillow fight with his little sister.

He could not help the smile that formed when he saw Prompto standing in the foyer when he reached the top of the stairs. “Prom! You made it. I’m glad you didn’t get too lost on your way here.” He said while rushing down the stairs, pulling him in close.

The blonde gave a little laugh and leaned into the hug. “No, they worked really well. Show me around? I’ve only heard about it for, well, years and never seen it.”

“Sorry about that. I didn’t want to freak you out with everyone.” Gladiolus confessed. He released the embrace but entwined their hands together.

“Prompto!” Iris cried and immediately threw herself at his boyfriend. “It’s so good to see you. Gladdy’s been keeping you all to himself.”

“Like that.” He muttered. “Iris, please let him breath.”

She gave a little laugh and pulled away from the hug to look him over with a wide grin. “Gladdy just told me the awesome news! I can’t believe it! I’m so happy for him.”

Prompto blinked a few times and then looked over at Gladiolus with wide eyes. The Shield gave his hand a squeeze. “Iris, I’m going to give Prom a tour of the house. Don’t you have homework to finish?” He just barely stifled his laughter at the loud sigh he got in return to that.

Once they were left alone, Gladiolus pulled Prompto in close to give him a soft kiss. “Sorry about that. She’s a bit excited about us.”

Finally the blonde gave a small laugh at that. “I couldn’t tell. She seemed so serious and solemn just now. Don’t you owe me a tour of the house?”

“I do, come on. We should have some time before Dad and Regis come home.” He said without thinking about it.

Prompto stopped and tugged on their hands. “Regis? What do you mean by that?”

Gladiolus wondered if Prompto wasn’t aware of the worst kept secret in all of Insomnia. “Regis, Noct’s dad? He and Dad might have dinner over at our place a few times a week. Noct used to come over when he didn’t have the apartment.”

Those blue eyes narrowed at him for a long moment, forcing him to keep talking. “And, sometimes, Dad will stay with Regis now that we’re old enough. To, you know, do couple things?” This should not be so hard to tell Prompto.

“Your dad and the King are. . . a couple?” Prompto said slowly.

“Yes? I thought everyone knew this. The tabloids are always yelling about it.”

“Who believes the tabloids! They think I’m dating Noct half the time.” 

Which, that should not have been such a good rebuttal to all of this. Gladiolus hated that he had a point. “Well, in this instance, they are right. I’m glad they’re wrong about you and Noct. I would have been a bit jealous.”

“That is not the point. You’re telling me your dad and the King are sleeping together, and I’m meeting both of them tonight?” Prompto’s voice was starting to rise and go fast. A sign that swift action should be taken to prevent a full panic.

“They’re just dads. They aren’t anything fancy when they’re here. I assure you, Regis is nothing to worry about. And Dad is just. . . Dad. He’s going to love you. Like I do.”

Gladiolus’s mind just went a bit blank. If he were to take a good look at Prompto’s face, so was his mind.

“You. . . what?” The younger teen said softly.

Since this whole evening decided to run away from the original plan, Clarus and Regis chose that moment to come home. Coming in from the front door since the King required a ride to get back to the Citadel.

Allowing them a front row sight to Gladiolus holding Prompto close to try and keep him calm, while the blonde was staring up at him and clutching onto his shirt for dear life.

“Good evening boys. Are we interrupting something?” Regis asked calmly from where he was standing, slightly leaning on his cane.

Prompto chose that moment to freeze in shock, his hands curling up a little bit tighter on his shirt. Gladiolus let out a long sigh and rubbed his back gently. “Maybe, just a little bit?” He carefully moved them so they were facing the two adults, but he made sure he kept a firm hold on his boyfriend. “Dad, Regis, I would like you to meet my boyfriend, Prompto. Prompto, this is my dad, Clarus, and my dad’s… something, Regis.”

The lack of former title for Regis made Clarus sigh and rub his forehead for a moment. “Gladiolus, really? Hello Prompto, it’s nice to meet you. I hope you feel welcomed here. I look forward to getting to know you.”

“Ah, yes, I’ve heard a lot about you from Noctis. I’m glad to be able to finally meet you as well. It’s a pleasure.” Regis said, taking the opportunity to reach forward to offer his hand to him.

Finally Prompto shook himself awake a little bit and took the hand. “It’s nice to meet you. I’m sorry, that’s not the proper address, but I can’t remember what Iggy told me. I’m so sorry Your Majesty!”

“Oh, did Gladdy not tell you yet? We don’t use titles in this house. I’m just Regis right now. No need for formality.” The King waved off the apologies with a little smile. “I’m just here to enjoy some nice company, and dinner, and relax.”

“Come on Reggie, we should have a bit of time to chat before dinner.” Clarus said as he wrapped an arm around Regis’s waist to guide him toward a sitting room. “I believe we had something to discuss.”

“Yes, I do believe you were right.” Regis leaned into the hold a little bit while they walked away, leaving the teens behind easily.

Gladiolus let out a sigh at them. “I hate that word. I always feel dirty when they do that.”

Prompto looked up at him. “I’m sorry, why?”

“You don’t want to know.”

\---

The moment Gladiolus got into the car; Cor started driving. He had complete focus on the road, and from the way they were moving through traffic, the Shield was certain they were breaking about a dozen laws. Now he understood why some of the Crownsguard said they never wanted to be in the car with Cor. The man seemed to drive like he was Immortal. And above traffic laws.

To keep his mind off the road, he looked at his phone to see if he had gotten any more updates. Unfortunately, there was nothing but silence from everyone. He flipped over to a news app to scan the headlines. They were mentioning the lockdown happening, but no one knew the Prince had been taken hostage inside at this point.

In about half the time the drive should have taken them, the pair of Crownsguard made it to the scene. He took a breath to keep himself calm. This was a moment keeping calm was crucial so he could do his job well.

The scene was as he pictured it. Orderly despite the number of local law enforcement, Crownsguard, and Kingsglaive moving around the area. They were all looking to each other for orders in a well-coordinated movement that spoke of years of training. This should mean they would manage to break through this situation sooner than later.

\---

Prompto swung their hands while they walked down the street. His other hand was gesturing wildly while he explained some adventure he and Noctis had gotten into during school. Gladiolus was doing his best to follow along with the rapid fire storytelling. Really, just hearing him excited and being able to hold hands was a nice sensation.

Eventually the story wound down, and Prompto calmed enough to just lean his head against his boyfriend’s arm. “When do you think we should tell Noct and Iggy about us?” he asked curiously.

“Huh? Oh, I guess any time really? Does it bother you?” Gladiolus looked over at the other to judge his state of mind. Fortunately, it seemed that this was just a random thought.

“I realized that his dad knows about us but not our friend. And that was what. . . a few months ago now? I also haven’t really forgiven you for that.” The blonde replied while reaching over to poke his side a little bit.

Gladiolus shrugged. “Yeah? Dad and Regis found it funny, and I was right, they like you a lot. You’re supposed to come over for dinner again soon.”

He heard the deep breath Prompto took as he took in all of that information. “Alright, we can figure that out soon enough. So, are we going to tell Noct and Iggy?”

“Sure, we can do that. I can meet you two at the arcade later this week, and we can tell him. I can grab Iggy on the way, and we can have dinner together at that restaurant we like?” Gladiolus offered after a moment to think the idea over.

His hand got a squeeze at that. “Good. I can’t wait to see the look on Noct’s face when he finds out.”

Gladiolus let out a bark of laughter at that. “Prom, love, if they aren’t a little suspicious, then we aren’t being obvious enough. I know Iggy has been giving me looks for a little bit. He thinks I’m pining. I’m waiting for him to crack.”

Prompto gave a little gasp before laughing. “I suppose he might have a point to think that. I guess we aren’t the most subtle about this. Though, there isn’t really much of a point for it, right?”

“Not at all. Especially if it means I can convince you to come over to the house more often. I would count that as a win for everyone. Mostly me.” Gladiolus said with a laugh.

“Oh sure, I see how it is.” Prompto stopped them in order to lean up and give his cheek a quick kiss.

\---

Cor stepped forward to start talking to several of the Crownsguard. Gladiolus watched the scene for a bit before starting to go toward the building. Just like the CC TV footage, the window coverings were still keeping all but the barest of movement concealed from their view. One of the Crownsguard had a bullhorn to project their willingness to hear the demands of the assailants with periodic breaks to allow them to reply.

Still, during each break, where everyone stayed still and quiet, no noise was heard from inside the building. During those moments, even those little bits of movement stopped until the bullhorn started up again.

Gladiolus was about to ask the Crownsguard captain he had approached what he could do to help when the sound of gunshots rang through the street. Everyone ducked down in case of a hidden sniper.

“Inside the building!” Someone shouted, and then they all ran toward the building while more shots were being fired. The person on the bullhorn started to demand to know what they could do to stop the shooting.

“Bring the battering ram!” Another person called. The words got a group of people to move over to one of the trucks parked on the street and start pulling out a long black ram.

Finally, despite their shouting and bullhorn echoing around the street, they could keep hearing intermittent gunshots from inside the building, and soon enough yelling from inside the building started to join the cacophony. Gladiolus felt his heart hammering at the noise, hoping this meant something good was happening. He did not want to doom the people inside by their rash actions.  
The team moving the ram were in place to begin hammering the door, when the door swung open smoothly.

Prompto stood in the doorway with Noctis propped against his shoulder, pistol hanging down by his side in his free hand, finger resting along the barrel. The Prince’s eyes were half lidded and was only standing due to leaning against his friend at that moment. The blond, on the other hand, had his eyes quickly surveying everyone around him, especially taking quick note of the battering ram in front of them and ready to slam into them. Gladiolus wondered how much adrenaline was still rushing through him to keep him still so jumpy after the fight.

“Argentum! Status!” Cor asked while moving quickly to break through the group. No one bothered to stop him.

Prompto looked up at Cor before giving him a nod and smile. “Sir, there were ten assailants who took over the arcade. Noct has a pretty bad knock on his head from trying to fight them off all at once. Tied up everyone to keep us contained. Once I managed to get my weapon, the situation was changed to our favor.” He weakly lifted his pistol, showing off the darkening bruises and swelling on his wrist and hand.

“And the assailants?” The Marshall inquired.

“They have been incapacitated. You will find them inside to take into custody. It was pretty intense.” The blond added with a smile.

Gladiolus just managed to keep his posture and not rub his forehead at the last statement. He had a feeling only Prompto would manage to say something like that to Cor with a smile.  
Cor only blinked, gave a nod to the report, then turned to the people around him. “We need Medical to look over His Highness, immediately. Take him back to the Citadel. Crownsguard, please see to taking the assailants to the appropriate cells once their medical status has been assessed.”

A flurry of activity started to happen then, leaving Gladiolus feeling a little bit in the way. He was not surprised to find Prompto coming over to him eventually. “Hey there, thank you for the assist. Figured I could count on you.”

The Shield smiled at that. “Thanks for watching out for Noct. I should have been there. I shouldn’t have listened to him this morning.”

His words would have kept going if Prompto hadn’t reached out to touch his hand. “Hey there, we got out alright. I got it covered, right? Noct did a good job too, you trained him well. Plus, you’ll be there for him in the future.”

Gladiolus smiled at that, reaching up to cup the other’s cheek gently. “You did great in there. I knew you would.” He leaned down to kiss him gently before pulling away slowly. “Now it’s time for you to see Medical. Your wrist looks terrible from saving the day.”

\---

“Prompto, what the fuck was that in there? When did you learn how to do any of that?” Noctis watched Prompto from his infirmary bed with narrowed eyes in between bites of his pudding cup.

Prompto blinked and gave a little shrug. “I don’t know, at some point when I knew Gladio? He started to teach me how to spar, and well, it just kept going. I thought I told you we were working out and shit.”

Noctis jabbed the spoon he was holding in his direction. “Gladiolus the Shield does not teach people how to shoot like that, nor does he teach people how to flip in the air like a freaking cat. I would know, I have spent years training with him, he taught me how to fight. That was some bullshit, and I am intrigued.”

Those words made the blonde rub the back of his head. Gladiolus was wondering what had happened inside the arcade. “Oh, well, that. . . that was Cor. I think he’s trying to get me to join the Crownsguard, or maybe the Kingsglaive?”

The Kingsglaive was not something Gladiolus was considering, but certainly something he would not put past Prompto. 

“You have been training with Cor and forgot to tell me this? Is that why you couldn’t hang out as much recently?” The Prince had his spoon ready to throw at this point. “What else are you keeping from me?”

“Sorry? I guess if I’m confessing things, I’m dating Gladio, and your dad already knows?” Prompto said in a quick rush.

“Prompto!” Noctis yelled before throwing the spoon at his now laughing friend. “No more secrets! Royal decree!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A huge HUGE thank you to Clockways (on Twitter and Tumblr) to listening to me whine about this, especially during the editing process! Go check her out, she makes amazing artwork!
> 
> Now, time to go write the sequel to this so we can have Prompto in the Kingsglaive!

**Author's Note:**

> A massive, massive thank you to Clockways for encouraging me to write this, and listening to the whining I did while editing this! This would not have happened without that help!


End file.
